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    Five Things I Learned by Bringing Mariachi to My School District

    Jaimie Abney-Giraldo | November 13, 2022SBO+: This is the first in a series of articles about mariachi and other genres of music to make our programs more inclusive and diverse. A few years ago, I was invited to adjudicate a mariachi festival and I was blown away by their musical excellence, the obvious enthusiasm, and the effectiveness of community outreach. […] Read More...

  • Video Games are Master Teachers

    Jared Brockmeyer | November 13, 2022SBO+: Jared mentioned to me he was going to make this presentation at the Midwest Clinic in December. I was so fascinated with his topic I asked him to share it with SBO+ readers. As I was finessing slides for the upcoming Midwest Clinic presentation I watched my 10-year-old daughter try Portal on my Nintendo […] Read More...

  • This is Lifelong Learning

    Karen Cross | October 13, 2022For years, principal Robin Scott has watched through her office window as eager sixth graders met outside in the early days of school, showing off their first sounds on new instrument mouthpieces. Then—just months later—she marveled at those same students as they confidently performed full pieces of music. She’s always been intrigued by the exponential […] Read More...

  • Why the Bassoon is the Most Interesting Instrument in the World

    Donovan Tong | October 13, 2022SBO+: This article came to us from a talented musician and writer who clicked “Write for SBO” on our homepage. Have something to share? Write for SBO+! I started playing the bassoon, the most wonderful instrument I have ever seen, in 6th grade. It all happened by chance. In the summer of 5th grade, my dad […] Read More...

  • Composing and Copyright

    Harvey Rachlin | October 13, 2022For many musicians and singers, music is the pulse of life. Their hearts swell to the sound of lush melodies, their bodies sway to intoxicating rhythms, their spirits lift to the soothing blend of sweet harmonies. As creative sorts, their passion for music sometimes goes beyond performing music–they want to create it. Who wouldn’t dream […] Read More...

  • The Summer Slide – Rediscovering Your Love of Music: How to Continue Student Improvement over the Summer Months

    Stephen A. Salem | May 2, 2022As music educators, we conclude the school year feeling successful with how our students have grown over months of progress only to encounter the screeching halt of learning during the summer months. On top of that, it feels like we just started to witness growth with our students and now they are out the door. […] Read More...

  • The Lewis Prize – Big Bucks for Big Results

    Marty Steiner | April 20, 2022The Lewis Prize ought to be the biggest news of financial support in the entire music education community! Lewis annually awards four multi-year awards of $500,000 to each recipient organization, their Accelerator award, and a varying number of one year $50,000 awards, the Infusion award. The vision of the Lewis Prize is for every young person, regardless of who they are or […] Read More...

  • The Remembrance of Why

    Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser | April 20, 2022During the last two years our profession has been turned upside down because of the impact-and-effects of the pandemic; it has provided an unprecedented test of our attitude, tenacity, creativeness, convictions, commitment, dedication, and a host of many other personal character attributes. If anything, it has amplified the truth in Winston Churchill’s famous quote: “The […] Read More...

  • The First Real Thing in 18 Months

    Ryann Dykstra | January 19, 2022Though I would imagine that at a certain point the idea of finding oneself during the pandemic has become somewhat of a cliche, I think that it is hard to read prompts that purposefully invoke thoughts that force self-reflection and not let my mind wander to Covid. Despite the tragedy of it all, the pandemic […] Read More...

  • Let’s Decolonize Music Education

    Stephanie Nantell | December 18, 2021Music has always been an important part of my life. I graduated from NYU with a Master of Arts in music education, played the trumpet at Walt Disney World, and taught music at public and charter schools in New York City. It’s been the great privilege of my life to not only perform music, but […] Read More...

  • Getting Your Foot in the School of Music’s Door – What Future Music Students Need to Know

    Dr. Emery Stephens, Dr. Teri Dobbs | July 10, 2021A conversation between College Music Society National Board members Dr. Teri Dobbs, professor of music education, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Dr. Emery Stephens, assistant professor of music performance studies, St. Olaf College. Teri: Emery, what a great opportunity it is to chat together about what future music educators need to know to not only be […] Read More...

  • Queer Identities in the Music Classroom

    Mia Ibrahim | June 12, 2021Music educators are provided with the ability to select repertoire that is reflective of our students’ many identities. However, some educators may struggle with representing various gender and sexual identities alongside our carefully planned culturally responsive curriculums. I have been teaching music longer than I have been out of the closet. I can empathize with […] Read More...
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